Biden-Harris still hates your gas stove, you won’t believe how much.

The Biden-Harris administration insists gas stoves are not targeted. Don’t believe a single word.

This kitchen controversy erupted in January 2023, when Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) Commissioner Richard Trumka Jr. told the media that his agency was investigating the safety of gas stoves and that a ban on them was “real.” His remarks sparked a strong consumer backlash against such government intervention, followed by assurances from the Biden-Harris administration that there would be no restrictions on the use of the stoves.

Denials aside, Washington bureaucrats really took aim at gas stoves back then—and they still do. They’re just getting smarter in the way they do it.

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Gone, at least for now, are the direct attacks from regulators on the type of stove preferred by 38% of American households and the clear choices of serious cooks. Biden-Harris appointee Trumka Jr. has stopped talking about the ban, although it should be noted that he was never asked to leave his job and that the CPSC investigation into gas stoves was not dropped.

The Biden-Harris administration continues to attack natural gas use with additional regulations. (Jakub Pozycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

And another agency, the Department of Energy (DOE), which in February 2023 proposed a tough new energy efficiency standard for stoves that was a thinly veiled crackdown on gas models in favor of electric versions, has decided to use a much less stringent standard that most gas stoves can also meet .

In other words, the two federal agencies that directly threatened gas stoves responded to public opposition by significantly moderating it, although neither stopped completely.

Instead of fighting gas stoves, the Biden-Harris administration is now focused on getting gas hooked up. Needless to say, you can’t use a gas stove unless your home or apartment has a natural gas supply, and the feds are using numerous agencies and programs to extend this restriction to as many Americans as possible in the coming years. .

Dozens of left-leaning cities across the country, as well as New York State, have banned or are considering banning natural gas hookups in new buildings. And now the Biden-Harris administration is providing them with legal and financial assistance. For example, the US Department of Justice sided with the city of Berkeley, California, in a federal lawsuit against a gas ban brought by a group of restaurant owners. Fortunately, the restaurant owners prevailed on the grounds that federal Berkeley law does not allow them to prevent the use of gas appliances.

In a filing with the court, Justice Department lawyers supported the city’s flimsy claim that a blanket ban on natural gas does not count as a restriction on gas stoves. The court rejected this spurious distinction, stating that “Berkeley cannot circumvent preemption by banning natural gas pipelines inside buildings rather than banning natural gas products themselves.”

But state and local governments seeking to block access to natural gas have vowed to find other ways to do so that will pass muster, and they will no doubt continue to receive legal help from Washington. They will also receive financial assistance through the Inflation Relief Act of 2022, which provides federal money to change state and local building codes to discourage gas affordability.

The feds are also using the power of their purse strings for home construction. This includes an incentive program (also provided by the Inflation Relief Act) for developers of single- and multifamily buildings that do not use natural gas and operate solely on electricity.

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In another line of attack on the blue flame, the administration is taking steps to turn the availability of natural gas into a barrier to qualifying for federally backed home mortgages. This includes the mortgage programs of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and its Federal Housing Administration (FHA).

Richard L. Trumka, Jr. is a member of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). He told the media that his agency was investigating the safety of gas stoves and that a ban on them was a “real possibility.” (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call via Getty Images)

For example, HUD is working with the Department of Energy on recommendations to eliminate all greenhouse gas emissions from homes and buildings. This goal can only be achieved by eliminating the use of natural gas. HUD also joined the Department of Agriculture in adopting energy efficiency standards that new homes must meet to qualify for federal funding. These standards include voluntary electrification provisions that states are encouraged to adopt.

True, none of these measures have yet developed into a ban on government assistance to buyers of homes supplied with natural gas. But the long-term message for home builders is clear: It’s time to consider going electric-only, or your homes may face hurdles in qualifying for government-backed loans.

Ironically, the primary goal of these federal mortgage programs is to make housing more affordable, especially for first-time and low-income families, but the current administration is prioritizing policies that could make housing more expensive. For example, the National Association of Home Builders estimates that the cost of the new HUD efficiency standards will increase to $31,000 per home.

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The feds are also using the power of their purse strings for home construction. This includes an incentive program (also provided by the Inflation Relief Act) for developers of single- and multifamily buildings that do not use natural gas and operate solely on electricity.

This agenda comes from climate change activists who view natural gas negatively as a fossil fuel that contributes to planetary warming. And the Biden-Harris administration has embraced the gas war as part of its “whole-of-government” obsession with climate change. But from a homeowner’s perspective, natural gas is three times cheaper than electricity per unit of energy, according to the same Department of Energy that is involved in the multi-agency attack on it. Natural gas appliances can save homeowners more than $1,000 a year on utility bills compared to electric versions.

If it weren’t for the surprisingly strong 2023 reaction to potential gas stove regulations, we’d likely be on our way to major federal restrictions on them. The Biden-Harris administration yielded to public opinion, but only by changing tactics. As a result, the risk of losing gas stoves has been replaced by the risk of losing gas for all purposes.

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